Does Going All the Way to Failure in One Set Build More Muscle?
Without Fail: Muscular Adaptations in Single Set Resistance Training Performed to Failure or with Repetitions-in-Reserve.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Going to failure didn’t clearly improve strength or endurance despite being more intense
Most people assume pushing to failure leads to greater strength gains, but after 8 weeks, both groups improved equally.
Practical Takeaways
Try training to failure on your last set of key lifts to potentially boost muscle growth slightly.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Going to failure didn’t clearly improve strength or endurance despite being more intense
Most people assume pushing to failure leads to greater strength gains, but after 8 weeks, both groups improved equally.
Practical Takeaways
Try training to failure on your last set of key lifts to potentially boost muscle growth slightly.
Publication
Journal
Medicine and science in sports and exercise
Year
2025
Authors
Thomas Hermann, Adam E. Mohan, Alysson Enes, M. Sapuppo, A. Piñero, Arman Zamanzadeh, Michael D. Roberts, Max Coleman, P. Korakakis, Milo Wolf, Martin C. Refalo, P. Swinton, B. Schoenfeld
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Claims (5)
You can build just as much muscle by stopping a few reps short of total exhaustion as you can by going all the way to failure during weight training.
If you're already used to lifting weights, going all the way to failure on each set doesn't give you better strength or endurance gains than stopping two reps short — at least over 8 weeks.
Going all the way to muscle exhaustion during one set of strength training might give you a tiny bit more muscle growth in your arms and legs than stopping two reps early — but the difference is small and not always clear.
Doing short, simple strength workouts just twice a week might be enough to build muscle and get stronger — even if you're already used to longer, more intense routines.
Doing one set of strength training until your muscles are totally tired might help you jump higher than stopping two reps early, but we’re not sure if the difference really matters.